Naming Technique of the Night

Chapter 874: 536, Snowline Rescue

The snowfield at 52 degrees north latitude is desolate and lonely.

The thick layers of snow are hard and cold, submerging up to the knees with each step.

Lao Lee shouted in the snow: “Everyone, keep up! The first company of the first battalion will be the first echelon to tread the snow, followed by the second company, and so on. No one is to stray from the formation. If anyone falls behind, do not stop for them! I repeat, if anyone falls behind, do not stop for them. These are the orders!”

In the A02 base, the people were divided into three groups: the Qing’s Family, the Li Family, and the prisoners exiled from the Jindai territory.

The Li Family had been trapped in the A02 base for over a decade, and yet they had secretly rebuilt their structure and organization. This was the only way to keep their spirits from completely scattering.

On the surface, they obeyed the Jindai’s torment, but secretly they maintained their discipline. This was also why in the prison, the Li Clan and Qing Clan were still able to unite separately against another group of people.

This was the last thing they could do.

It was the undying spirit of the Li’s Soldiers; as long as the structure remained, the soul of the army remained.

Li Cheng’s instruction to not care if someone fell behind was something they had learned through years of reverence for the world.

The barren snowfield at 52 degrees north latitude had withered, dark trees. There was no food or supplies, and they were only wearing thin winter clothes.

Attempting to rescue someone would only drag down the entire team.

So all they could do was move forward, keeping their comrades in their hearts.

This was the reality.

Li Cheng, in his forties, always led the front of the team. He was a C-Class Genetic Warrior, thus the most physically strong and the spiritual backbone of all the Li’s people.

As long as he remained at the front, the team behind would not scatter.

Li Cheng said to the company commander: “The damn Jindai never wait the full two hours. Who knows how early they will come this time. Fortunately, that group of desperados sent by Jindai is scattered; they will help us buy some time. Whether it’s enough for us to reach the target area is uncertain. So the team mustn’t stop, not even for a moment, understand?”

As he spoke, his breath turned to frost in the air, his nose reddened by the cold, and ice crystals formed on his beard.

Lao Lee looked ahead and murmured, “This time… let’s not think about returning to that hellish place. If we fall here, our souls will traverse the snowfield, cross the roaring Chunlei River, and return home. Do you remember what home looks like? I can scarcely remember.”

After an hour of traveling, Lao Lee finally saw the place he was searching for.

From behind, the hum of drones approached, a military drone swiftly flew over their heads and quickly returned to base.

The Jindai had found them!

“Quick! Quick!” Lao Lee hurriedly waded through the snow, running to the spot he was looking for, and began to furiously shovel the snow away.

Then he dug through the hard dirt beneath the snow.

Underneath the dirt, eight wooden crates were buried, they had been collecting these weapons over a decade of winter hunts.

Each winter hunt, they managed to kill some Jindai soldiers through cunning, and then Li Cheng would activate the inhibitor to secretly transport the weapons here.

They knew that acquiring five or six automatic rifles at a time was useless, so they saved them, hoarding until they had enough.

According to Li Cheng’s calculations, even if they hoarded for a hundred years, they’d only have five or six hundred rifles, and some would already have rusted by then.

But… what if?

What if they got lucky one time and acquired more? Opportunities are for the prepared.

Moreover, even if Li Cheng didn’t live to see the day they had enough weapons, he could leave them for future generations. One day, someone would carry those guns and escape this hellish place.

Then, those who regained their freedom would head south, walking towards spring and freedom.

That thought made Li Cheng content.

But as Li Cheng opened the eight wooden crates, he found they were filled with stones, feces, and bones.

“Damn it! Jindai!” Lao Lee cursed.

Everyone looked at the wooden crates, imagining how the Jindai soldiers had swapped the weapons for excrement with mocking looks.

“What now?” someone asked in despair.

The contents of those eight crates had been their last hope, the items that would allow them to die with dignity.

Now, they had nothing.

Lao Lee suddenly turned around, looking in the direction the drones came from: “Brothers, none of you want to go back to that hellish place, right? I’ve had enough of losing freedom for nineteen years.”

“Enough!”

Lao Lee began walking back the way they came: “If we die, we shall die in freedom.”

With that, Lao Lee started running.

Behind him, more and more people began to run, consumed by both fear and the desire for freedom.

In the distance, Lao Lee saw the figures of Jindai soldiers and their hated military uniforms.

The Jindai soldiers also saw them and raised their automatic rifles.

“Kill!” Li Cheng shouted.

“Kill!” Someone raised a rock and followed with a shout.

Bam!

Bam!

Bam!

Heartbeats and gunfire!

Lao Lee suddenly froze. Gunfire? Why was there so much gunfire?

He looked around and saw no one had fallen!

“No, the gunfire is coming from behind the Jindai troops! Something’s happening!”

The next moment, the over eight hundred people gradually stopped in their tracks. They weren’t scared, but the sudden change left them unsure of what to do.

Why was there gunfire behind the Jindai troops?

Li Cheng stood in the snow, muttering to himself: “It can’t be someone rescuing Qing Chen; if it were, it wouldn’t be from that direction… It’s Qing Chen!”

“Lao Lee, have you lost your mind? Qing Chen Inspector is still tied up in the pigsty, isn’t he?”

Lao Lee looked back at everyone: “Then who else would come from the direction of the A02 base?”

Everyone was stunned. The situation had suddenly taken a turn, but the problem was… Qing Chen was just one person.

How could one person be enough?

But the next moment, everyone looked towards the Jindai soldiers, only to see two figures moving swiftly among them.

In a flash, two shadows streaked past a Jindai soldier, and that soldier was split in two. It was as if an invisible blade had sliced right through him.

There was an unseen blade between the two shadows!

Not only were people being cut down, but the trees the shadows passed also fell.

The prisoners were stunned. The killing techniques were overly brutal and highly efficient.

In just a minute, the eight-hundred Jindai soldiers were slaughtered by the darting shadows, no one could stop them.

“That shadow… it looks like that bastard Jindai Yunzi!”

“No, it looks like Qing Chen Inspector to me.”

“It’s two people; they’re teaming up to kill,” Lao Lee said. “They’re too efficient at killing; we shouldn’t go over and get in the way!”

Lao Lee wasn’t afraid of dying; he truly thought he’d only hold them back!

All the prisoners stayed in place, finding hope in their hopeless situation.

In the depths of despair, a ray of dawn pierced through.

Just as they were ready to die for their freedom, someone arrived from the sky.

They didn’t know how much time had passed, but the sounds of battle in the snowy woods gradually ceased.

The people of the Li Family stood still, hardly daring to breathe.

Slowly, Qing Chen’s figure emerged from the snowy woods, followed by the puppet-like Jindai Yunzi. He was dragging a half-dead man in his hand.

Qing Chen approached Lao Lee and calmly asked: “Can you still move?”

Lao Lee looked at Jindai Yunzi, having previously thought he had defected, but now saw him covered in wounds, eyes vacant, hands bloody, with deep bone-deep cuts.

He looked less like a living man and more like a suffering corpse!

Qing Chen asked again: “Can you still move?”

“Yes, yes!” Lao Lee replied.

“What’s this guy’s name?” Qing Chen lifted the barely conscious officer. The man was already unconscious.

Lao Lee quickly replied: “His name is Takahashi Izumi, an officer at the A02 base. I judge him to be a C-Class.”

“Hmm,” Qing Chen nodded, indifferent to the man’s identity. He had just captured the fastest one to turn into a puppet.

Now, the Puppeteer could control two people.

As he spoke, everyone saw the fainted Takahashi Izumi stand up like a puppet, with vacant eyes.

At that moment, everyone understood what had happened to Jindai Yunzi.

Qing Chen Inspector could actually control a B-Class Expert!

At this point, Qing Chen no longer considered keeping secrets or conserving his strength; he had to give his all to lead these people away.

Qing Chen said to Lao Lee: “Take the Jindai uniforms, wrap them around yourselves, pick up any usable weapons, and follow me… I’ll get you all out of here.”

Lao Lee timidly asked: “Can you confirm if you’re truly the master of the Autumn Leaf Courtyard?”

Qing Chen glanced at him: “Yes.”

The prisoners exchanged glances, nearly teary-eyed with excitement.

But then, Li Cheng suddenly said: “You should go on your own. You won’t get far with us.”

This statement made the prisoners of the Li Family fall silent again. They understood what Li Cheng meant.